Guest Post: 5 Secrets to Creating a Better Author Website

So much of writing is moving to the internet. Even authors need to have an online presence, and usually, this comes with a website and a blog. But how do you make your author website and blog interesting to readers and other people who may come across it? Having an engaging online presence can lead to new readers and more sales, so try incorporating a few of these ideas to create content for your website that will hook people and bring them in.

Include Interactive Content

One of the best things about having an online presence is the ability to create interactive content for your readers. Great content moves beyond just the written word. You can use videos, music, pictures, and other interactive content to draw in a reader and get them interested. Studies have shown that the more there is beyond the written word, the more likely you are to drive traffic to your website.

Optimize for Mobile Users

Make sure that your website is optimized for mobile users. A lot of people are going to find your website on their phone or tablet, and if they can’t access it on these devices, they probably aren’t going to go to the trouble of finding a computer that they can use. Not only does this help you retain readers, but optimizing for mobile users will help you with search engines. Google places emphasis on websites that adapt well to mobile users, so if your website doesn’t you are less likely to show up high in search rankings, which means people won’t find you.

Organize Your Website

One of the most frustrating things about websites is not being able to find what you want to easily. It’s important that you organize your content, so people can easily find the things that they are looking for. The best way to do this is to identify the different types of content that you have an organizing it according to that. The SEO Expert points out that there are three main types of pages and content that you can use to organize your website.
Anchor pages and content are used to identify the main purpose of your website. For authors, these pages are probably going to be about your books and future stories that you are writing. This is what most people are coming to your website for. Each of these pages should be clearly marked and easy to find.
Blog pages and content are usually a secondary purpose of your website. You can use these pages to give writing tips, updates on your next book, or to host giveaways and contests. Each blog post doesn’t need to be marked individually, but the blog should be easy to identify. The third type of page and content is called supporting content. This content contains other useful information that isn’t part of the main purpose of your website. These pages are also usually marked individually, but they aren’t featured as prominently as anchor pages.

Engage on Social Media

Being engaged on social media is a must for everyone this day, and authors really need to be present. The more someone feels connected to their favorite author, the more likely they are to stay interested in the books that are being written. If your website can incorporate this social media trend, that’s even better. This will allow you to interact with your fans and your fans can interact with each other. As has been proven multiple times, the more connected a fanbase, the more the word gets out and the bigger the following becomes.
Your social media presence doesn’t have to be big, but make sure that it is authentic. You can use this to promote your books, recent blog posts, contests, or to ask your readers a question. Figure out what will work best for the people that your writing attracts. Teenagers are going to respond better to some tactics than someone in their 30s.

Create an Email List

People won’t usually come to your website every day, but they will return if they are excited about the content that you have. One of the best ways to get them excited about that content is to let them know what you have. Create an email list that they can sign up for that will send them updates about their favorite books, your blog posts, any giveaways you are doing, and book signing information. You can even create different newsletter options to customize to each person. Email campaigns are fairly simple to set up and having that option to have the highlights delivered to their inbox is a very attractive feature for a lot of people.
Figuring out what works best for your author website and how to attract the following that you want may take a little time, but these tips are a great way to get started. Draw people in with your social media campaigns, get them interested by creating an easy and interactive experience, and keep them by giving them an easy way to come back.

Other reviewers have called The Author Training Manual a must-read, and I have to agree. Nina Amir has compiled a great amount of research, experience, and real-life samples that can help any other, self-published, traditionally publishe...